


In Pursuit of Knowledge

by dheth



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: F/M, Gen, Mutual Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-12
Updated: 2016-09-12
Packaged: 2018-08-14 14:23:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8017402
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dheth/pseuds/dheth
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>My fic for the Perc'ahlia Vacation prompt exchange on tumblr: I got "in a library".</p>
<p>Vex and Percy researching dragons (and pseudo-dragons because to hell with VM not taking Lockheed with them) in Whitestone. Set after Episode 64 - The Frigid Doom.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In Pursuit of Knowledge

**Author's Note:**

> Many, many thanks to lady_deathangel and iamgwenslongroadhome for betaing.

 

Vex had never been the studious type, at least not in the sense of being bookish. In Syngorn she'd been a decent student, but that was the most that could be said of her performance in school: a decent student and a harder worker than Vax. Most of her true education had come from the woods, from taking in what was around her and learning to interpret it and traverse it. What she hadn't been able to teach herself she had eagerly learned from others. She’d learned to blend into the shadows and take her enemies by surprise. She’d learned to speak to the inhabitants of the Underdark and know her surroundings and potential enemies there as well as she did in her beloved woods.

The exception had always been dragons. They had created a mixture of hatred and fear and dread within her since she had learnt of her mother's death. Vex had sought out her knowledge of them,so that she could feel better prepared and have knowledge to hopefully outweigh the fear. She had found that books were the surest and truest way to gain that knowledge. She still gladly spoke with those who had knew more than she did or, better still, had fought one and lived, but many adventurers knew little beyond their own experiences with them. Now few could tell her anything new at all. She had combed libraries and then shops, giving the little gold she'd had in the hope of learning more in a tome she hadn't seen before. Precious rare books she had to sell after to keep herself and Vax afloat. It had been a quest for knowledge that would have made any scholar proud and it had served her well.

Her knowledge had served all of them well, really. Vox Machina had felled three dragons before the appearance of the Conclave in Emon and one since. Such battles were never easy but so far they had survived; it was only by refusing to consider an alternative that she managed to press on. Although, not all of them had survived, had they? Tiberius may have returned to Draconia, but he had still remained a part of their family and Vex was sure she hadn't been the only one hoping he would return to them.

It had been finding him, burying him, that had driven Vex into the library at Whitestone. She didn't think anything there would help with their search for the Vestiges and frankly didn't have the patience to comb through anything that might, but surely there would be a volume, perhaps several, on dragons. Even if there was nothing new to her it seemed prudent to take advantage of the chance to reacquaint herself with the details of chromatic dragons and see if she could find anything on pseudo-dragons.

Lockheed rested across her shoulders as she entered the library. He was full from his latest feeding as Vex worked on restoring his strength. It seemed unlikely that there would be anything with very much information that would help her with him, she didn't recall coming across much on pseudo-dragons in her previous studies, but it seemed that she had inherited Lockheed by virtue of being the only remaining member of Vox Machina that spoke Draconic so she would give him the best care, the best love, she could. It was all she could do for Tiberius, now. They had been going up against the Conclave before, after all, and while taking down Vorugal would be especially gratifying now, while it would have the taste of revenge for the loss of their brother in arms, caring for Lockheed was more personal. It was something she could do to continue to feel close to Tiberius.

Vex had no idea where the de Rollos, or the Briarwoods for that matter, would have kept any books on dragons. The few libraries she'd been able to gain access to hadn't been the private collections of families, excepting her father's when she and Vax had been in Syngorn before she'd started studying dragons, and hadn't been arranged the way this one was. So she wandered quietly, both to keep from disturbing the silence of the room and to keep from waking Lockheed.

Luck was with her, though, and before long she spotted a familiar shock of white hair as she rounded a row of shelves. Percy would know exactly where to look. She briefly debated sneaking up on him: it would be easy enough with his attention on the shelf he was perusing and her soft tread, and plenty amusing of course, but then startling someone was hardly the best way to go about getting their help even if she was sure he wouldn't refuse her either way.

“Could you help me, darling?”

Percy still started visibly, but it was only a little and Vex hadn't intended it. That must count for something.

“With what, dear?”

Vex grinned at the endearment. For so long they'd been somewhere between rare and non-existent from Percy and they were still rarely given to anyone else in Vox Machina. She enjoyed receiving them far more than she should, far more than was prudent. First arrows, then compliments, then endearments, and then a title. It was so good to see him finally come out of his shell, to see him happy, or at least closer to it than he had been before the death of the Briarwoods and Scanlan's... unorthodox means of taking care of whatever had taken hold of Percy. Vex was always fond of things that benefited her. It had taken having to see her horrible father to get the title, and it had come with little of tangible value, true, but it was worth so much to her for what it meant. Its value was in the knowledge that Percy thought highly of her and cared enough about her to make such a gesture. The pleasure she took in Percy calling her 'dear' had already been ill-advised and Vex had to stop herself from thinking about the title – her title – too much because _it_ was too much.

“Oh, I have a few questions I'd simply love to ask you, of course, but for the moment I'd be content with knowing if there are any books on dragons here. It can't hurt to brush up a bit, can it? And anything on pseudo-dragons, naturally.”

“Naturally,” Percy responded dryly with a look at Lockheed before beginning to lead her to another section of shelves.

“We have one volume, perhaps two, exclusively on dragons, I think, and a few others with sections devoted to them. I can't say I've ever looked for information on pseudo-dragons specifically, though. I could help you look, if you like.”

 

* * *

 

“That would be lovely, Percy,” Vex said with a smile as she reached over to touch his arm.

It said a great deal about his state of mind, he was sure, that simply hearing his name on her lips and having her hand on his arm set his stomach to fluttering. The fact that hearing his name felt almost as nice as hearing her drawled 'darling' addressed to him was a sign of... well, of something. He would hesitate to say feelings, though that was self-preservation as much as anything else. Because having feelings for anyone was at best inconvenient and made everything more complicated and at worst -

Well, Percy didn't think Vex would ever intentionally hurt him, but nor could he let himself imagine things going well. Doing that would be inviting pain.

Even if the remainder of Vox Machina survived taking down the rest of the Chroma Conclave, which was hoping for rather a lot, Vex had told Saundor her heart belonged to another. Percy couldn't guess who that would be, unless it was a sibling thing (there was no denying that Vex and Vax's bond and love for one another went deep, it was was plain to everyone). He did know with complete certainty that he didn't deserve her. The people in Syngorn who had looked down on the twins were not the only people from money Percy had been referring to when he had told her that they were not worth her. He wasn't sure there had ever been a time when he would have been worthy of her, but he was certainly long past that point now. Any version of himself that might have been worthy of Vex had died when he had fled Whitestone all those years ago.

He was also certain that Vax would at least seriously consider killing him in his sleep if anything were to happen between them.

But now was not the time to dwell on such thoughts. Percy stopped in front of a shelf and began to pull down the books that seemed promising. Vex's knowledge of dragons was already so extensive he doubted there would be anything here that was new to her; no one in his family had studied dragons specifically to the best of his knowledge and the offerings at Whitestone were basic. Still, it would be good for him to brush up as well and with Emon, Westrunn, and Draconia in ruins there wasn't really anywhere else they knew they could turn for information. Not unless they created yet another delay and went to Vasselheim. There might be information at the Take's guildhall or the temple of Bahomet, but in addition to the time it would take Percy wasn't sure their presence wouldn't make the place a target. Being in Whitestone made him nervous enough, he didn't want draw the Conclave's attention to the seat of civilization and religion: he couldn't bear the thought of bringing ruin down on such a place.

They spread the books out over a table, which made Lockheed flitter from Vex's shoulders to the back of an unoccupied chair with a disgruntled noise at being disturbed, and began to comb through the texts. It was time consuming but a familiar, welcome respite from hurrying frantically from continent to continent. For the next few hours their companionable silence was only broken when one or the other of them found information that seemed particularly pertinent. Percy eventually found a chapter on pseudo-dragons and surrendered the book gladly to Vex as he sat back and pulled off his glasses to rub the bridge of his nose.

* * *

 

“Percy, dear,” Vex said as she turned the page, feigning nonchalance, “what did Scanlan make you think happened in the Feywild?”

She wasn't remotely surprised when Percy fumbled his glasses back on and tried to deflect by leaning in to look at the book again.

“It must have been scandalous,” she continued as she looked up at him with a teasing smile and slid the book away. “You certainly looked shocked and, well, it was Scanlan.”

“It was... yes, I suppose 'scandalous' is a good word for it. It doesn't matter, though, surely. I remember what really happened, now.”

“True,” Vex conceded. “I'm just curious as to what would be deplorable enough to make you try to buy my silence with a title.”

“I didn't try to buy your silence!”

“I know, darling. It was lovely, why you gave it to me. But whatever Scanlan showed you had you convinced that you would have tried to if it had been what happened.”

Percy pushed at his glasses to rub the bridge of his nose again.

“I suppose you're determined?”

“Oh, very.”

“And I won't have a moment of peace until I tell you?”

“Not a single moment, no.”

“Very well,” Percy sighed. “It... involved several nymphs. And no clothing.”

“Percival!” Vex laughed, delighted. “Really, it sounds like a memory you should be rather grateful to Scanlan for.”

Percy groaned and put his head in his hands.

“Really? I should be grateful for him giving me a memory of being utterly mortified at you walking in on something like _that_? I don't think so.”

“Not at the embarrassment, no. But the rest of it must have been rather nice. People pay a lot of money to have experiences like that without nymphs. I'm fairly confident Scanlan has paid a lot of money to have an experience like that at least once.”

“Yes, I'm sure he has.”

“And you did see a naked nymph there.”

“Yes, and I was struck blind for it.”

“I remember,” Vex grinned.

“Are you actually smiling about the fact that I was struck blind?” Percy asked, affronted.

“No, darling, of course not,” Vex replied as she tried unsuccessfully to school her expression. Percy raised his eyebrows in a look of disbelief and she laughed. “Honestly, Percy. I'm smiling because I also remember you refusing to look at me later when I was in just the hat because, what was it? Looking at naked beautiful things wasn't working out well for you? Something like that.”

Percy cleared his throat and looked down, trying to hide a blush.

“I would never strike you blind, you know.”

“Scanlan might – temporarily – to be funny,” he said. “Or Vax might – permanently – to keep me from looking at you.”

“He wouldn't,” Vex replied easily, “because he'd have to deal with me if he did. And Keyleth. But that's entirely beside the point. You said I was beautiful.”

“You know perfectly well that you're beautiful.”

“Yes,” Vex admitted easily. There were plenty of things she was insecure about, but it had been a long time since her looks had been one of them and she used them to her advantage often enough to have had the fact that she was attractive firmly reinforced by now. “But you essentially compared me to a nymph. That's quite the compliment, you know.”

“Yes, well,” Percy replied, clearly uncomfortable.

“Thank you, Percy,” Vex said, giving him a soft, fond smile. She kissed him on the cheek before reaching up to cup his jaw in her hand and turn his head enough to press a brief kiss on his lips. “You're rather dashing yourself. And thank you again for the title – for helping me deal with my father. You're a good man.”

“I'm hardly that,” Percy argued softly, choosing to focus on the ludicrous idea that he was a decent person so he wouldn't do something as ill-advised as kissing her back.

“Well, you're good to me. And I'm selfish, so that's enough.”


End file.
